Literary source for anti-psionics prejudice?

[Blue Ghost]

Jack L, Chalker's 4 Diamonds series. Fairly decent scifi reads. A very different approach to psionics.

[thrash]

Interesting, but too late (1981-1983) to be an influence on the original Traveller (1977).

Overall, I'm inclined to the conclusion that the elements of Traveller's psionics (including the extreme prejudice against its use) were present in the broad science fiction canon at the time, but that Marc Miller and company combined them in a novel fashion -- probably motivated by a desire for game balance.

[Blue Ghost]

A lot of scifi are psychiatric themes or even experimental psychology dressed up as aliens, monstes and spaceships. Not most, but a good chunk of them. I think Traveller takes some of its cues from those books. Ones dealing with "strange powers" or alternate cultures.

[David Johnston2]

Originally Posted by thrash

Interesting, but too late (1981-1983) to be an influence on the original Traveller (1977).

Overall, I'm inclined to the conclusion that the elements of Traveller's psionics (including the extreme prejudice against its use) were present in the broad science fiction canon at the time, but that Marc Miller and company combined them in a novel fashion -- probably motivated by a desire for game balance.

Yeah the prejudice in the science fiction of the 50s and 60s was against mutants with psi powers in settings where normal people had no psi potential.

[Blue Ghost]

I guess I brought up Chalkier because scifi in the 70s seemed to get hijacked from the true speculative authors by the psychology "revolution" that happened in the mid 60s up through the 70s. And where Traveller tackles a lot of security or law enforcement themes, a lot of that works hand in hand with psychology and psychiatry. And it pervaded only up until recently (say mid 90s) where military scifi has pushed back.

Traveller's adventures, to my mind at least, have players tackling ramifications of "poor thinking" or bad societal choices by the masses. And that's where psionics are a two fold lynch pin (or a microcosm) in the OTU (and one of the reasons I've stuck with it as a hobby), because it falls back on traditional scifi as a narrative for themes other than mental health.

Anyway, I hope that clarifies why I brought up that example, and I posted on this thread.

[jeff_wilson]

Originally Posted by thrash

On the other hand, ObiWan Kenobi is a hero. Regardless, Marc Miller has said that Star Wars came out too late to really influence the original design of Traveller. At best, Star Wars and Traveller drew from the same source material in similar ways.

Kenobi is a sympathetic hero to the audience, but he's still a survivor of the the previous galactic civil war who apparently fought on the side that is losing the current civil war, but more importantly:

Originally Posted by thrash

I have to modify this: in his White Dwarf #23 interview, Marc Miller said, "Movies and television particularly affected me."

This means Marc Miller inhaled as much FORBIDDEN PLANET and its train of influences (TWILIGHT ZONE, OUTER LIMITS) as Lucas et al did.

[Blue Ghost]

Not to get too off track, but there's some speculation by the authors of the French scifi comic book Valeria that he or members of his team drew from their publication.

They've got pics of Leia in her slave getup, the Millenium Falcon and so forth compared with various art in their comic.

Metropolis also helped influenced Star Wars.

I'm not sure if this really has any psionic influence or inspiration for Traveller.

[SteveS]

Originally Posted by jeff_wilson

. . .
This means Marc Miller inhaled as much FORBIDDEN PLANET and its train of influences (TWILIGHT ZONE, OUTER LIMITS) as Lucas et al did.

Beware the hazards of the Ancients site that is haunted by monsters from the id.

[sir_pudding]

I don't understand why neither Slan (1948) or Ubik (1969) count. Both have prejudice and paranoia about psionic powers.

[David Johnston2]

Originally Posted by sir_pudding

I don't understand why neither Slan (1948) or Ubik (1969) count. Both have prejudice and paranoia about psionic powers.

Slan are mutants. It's not a situation where everyone could learn to use woo-woo and yet there's a prejudice against those who do.